Withinfields Primary School

Withinfields Primary is a strongly inclusive school where pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), are well supported and achieve well. Inspectors found inclusion to be a particular strength: staff identify needs accurately, use effective training and adaptations, and work closely with families and specialists. The school has a much higher-than-average proportion of pupils with EHC plans, mostly for autism, and pupils speak maturely about difference and disability. Safeguarding standards are met. Most areas of the school's work are at the expected standard. Pupils typically achieve well and leave with the expected standard in national tests, attendance has improved to close to national averages, and behaviour is calm and respectful. The curriculum is ambitious and logically sequenced, reading, writing and mathematics are prioritised, early years provision prepares children well, and leaders have created a positive, valued staff culture with effective governance. The main development points are to strengthen pupils' recall of prior learning in a small number of subjects, support older pupils who have not fully secured basic knowledge, and sharpen leaders' analysis of whether improvement actions are working. The school is also rightly focused on continuing to improve attendance.

Strengths

• Highly effective identification and support for pupils with SEND
• Strong inclusive culture where pupils celebrate difference
• Effective assessment and timely interventions help pupils keep up
• Disadvantaged pupils achieve well and pupil premium is used carefully
• Most pupils achieve expected standards in national tests and are ready for the next stage
• Attendance has improved and is close to national averages
• Pupils are polite, respectful and behave well; bullying is rare
• Ambitious, logically sequenced curriculum with reading, writing and mathematics prioritised
• New writing curriculum is improving vocabulary, letter formation and composition
• Staff are well trained and adapt teaching effectively, especially for SEND
• Early years curriculum prepares children well and supports language and phonics
• Leaders are positive role models and staff morale is high
• Governors provide high-quality challenge and support
• Personal development is enriched through clubs, visits, pupil roles and PSHE
• Safeguarding standards are met

Areas for Improvement

• In a small number of subjects, pupils sometimes struggle to remember prior learning
• Older pupils have not fully secured some important basic knowledge in reading, writing and mathematics
• Leaders are not always clear about how they know their improvement actions are working, limiting the depth of analysis
• Attendance, though improved and close to national averages, remains a continuing priority

Admissions: local authority offers data from the Department for Education. A school is oversubscribed when at least 5% of the families who put it first were not offered a place, and undersubscribed when everyone who put it first got in but 10% or more of its places were unfilled in the Department's school capacity survey (the latest survey is used for entry years it does not cover). Places: Department for Education, School capacity, from local authorities' annual survey as at 1 May. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024–25); the survey was not run in 2020. Places include sixth form places. Forecasts are the local authority's own for the school's planning area, an area it uses to plan places that is not the school's catchment area. The forecast starts from a head count in 2025; the dashed line is the Department's estimate of places in that area, including those the authority has firm plans for. Planned places are cumulative, and only those with firm plans are counted.

In 2024–25 pupils at Withinfields Primary School attended 94.1% of sessions (the national figure for primary schools was 94.8%). 13.8% of pupils were persistently absent, missing at least one session in ten (nationally 13.0%).

Sessions missed

Pupils persistently absent

Source: Department for Education, Pupil absence in schools in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Persistent absence means missing 10% or more of sessions; severe absence means 50% or more. No figures were published for 2019/20.

In 2024–25, 1.7% of pupils at Withinfields Primary School were suspended at least once (nationally 1.1%). No pupils were permanently excluded.

Pupils suspended at least once

Source: Department for Education, Suspensions and permanent exclusions in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). A pupil can be suspended more than once, so suspensions per 100 pupils can be higher than the share of pupils suspended. Very small numbers are hidden by the DfE. Exclusion figures dropped in 2020 and 2021 because of school closures.

In 2025–26 Withinfields Primary School had 17.0 pupils for each teacher (the national figure for primary schools was 20.7). Of its teachers in 2024–25, 5.6% were no longer at the school a year later (nationally 15.7%).

Pupils per teacher

Teachers who left the school within a year

Source: Department for Education, School workforce in England. Each year is the one the school year ends in (2025 is 2024/25). Pupils per teacher counts full-time-equivalent pupils and teachers. Turnover is the share of a year's teachers (full-time equivalent) who were not at the school the following year, whether they moved to another school or left state-funded teaching. Turnover and sickness figures run one year behind the ratios. Sick leave is the share of teachers who took at least one day in the year, so it swings widely at small schools, where a few teachers can make it 0% or 100%. The national figures are for all state schools of the same type.

In 2025–26, 18.3% of pupils at Withinfields Primary School were on SEN support (nationally 15.4%) and 8.6% had an education, health and care (EHC) plan (nationally 4.1%).

Pupils by main type of need

Source: Department for Education, Special educational needs in England (the 2025–26 school census). SEN support is extra help in school without an EHC plan. National figures are for all state-funded primary schools. Counts are as published, with small numbers not hidden.

In 2025–26 Withinfields Primary School received £9,303 and spent £9,126 for each of its 330 pupils. It ended the year with reserves of £165,000 (£502 per pupil).

Income per pupil

Spending per pupil

Source: Department for Education, Financial Benchmarking and Insights Tool. Each year is the one the financial year ends in (2024 is 2023–24).

• Primary Schools
• Secondary Schools

All schools in Halifax · Calderdale local authority: places and applications

What is Withinfields Primary School's Ofsted rating?

The latest Ofsted rating for Withinfields Primary School is Expected standard, from an inspection in February 2026.

When was Withinfields Primary School last inspected by Ofsted?

Withinfields Primary School was last inspected in February 2026.

How many pupils does Withinfields Primary School have?

Withinfields Primary School has 338 pupils on roll.

What age range does Withinfields Primary School cover?

Withinfields Primary School for pupils aged 3 to 11.

What are Withinfields Primary School's SATs (KS2) results?

In 2025, 59% of Year 6 pupils met the expected standard in reading, writing and maths.

Where is Withinfields Primary School?

Withinfields Primary School is at Withinfields, Southowram, Halifax, West Yorkshire, HX3 9QJ.